You've unpacked your container. Job done, right? Not quite. The empty container still has to go back — and every day it sits on your site after the free window closes is a day of detention charges from the shipping line. Empty container pickup and dehire is the unglamorous but essential last step of an import move, and getting it wrong is one of the most common ways container costs blow out. Here's how it works and how to avoid the fees. For the full service detail, see our empty container transport page.
What is container dehire?
Dehire is the return of an empty shipping container to the shipping line's nominated Empty Container Park (ECP). When the ECP receives the container and confirms it back to the line, the container is "dehired" off your account — your booking closes and the detention clock stops. It sounds straightforward, but getting the right container to the right ECP, in the right condition, within the right window, is where plenty of operators come unstuck.
Demurrage vs detention — know the difference
These two charges are often confused, but they're distinct:
- Demurrage — charged by the terminal for keeping a full container beyond its free storage window after discharge
- Detention — charged by the shipping line for keeping the container (full or empty) beyond its free usage window, which runs until the empty is returned to the ECP
Demurrage is about the full container sitting at the port. Detention is about the container itself being out too long — and it only stops when the empty is returned. So even after you've picked up on time and beaten demurrage, you can still get hit with detention if the empty sits at your place too long.
How empty container pickup and dehire works
1. You unpack and advise the empty is ready
Once the container is unpacked and ready to go, let your transport provider know. The sooner the better — the detention clock is still running.
2. We confirm the correct ECP
Each shipping line uses specific Empty Container Parks. The right ECP is nominated on your container's release documentation. We confirm it from your paperwork before dispatch so the empty goes to the right place first time — no rejected returns, no re-trucking.
3. We collect and return the empty
We pick up the empty from your site and cart it to the nominated ECP. The park receives it, confirms it back to the line, and the dehire lodges — closing your booking and stopping the detention clock.
4. Dehire confirmed
Once the dehire is confirmed with the line, your container booking is closed out. No more detention, no more open slots.
Avoiding detention charges
Detention is almost entirely a timing problem — and timing is solved by acting early. The moment your container is unpacked, book the empty pickup. Don't let it sit "for a few days" — those days are charged. For regular importers, a standing dehire arrangement is the cleanest fix: we schedule routine empty pickups from your site on a cadence that matches your unpack cycle, so empties are always cleared within the free window and detention never starts.
Container condition and rejected returns
Empties returned to an ECP need to be in acceptable condition — clean, dry, free of cargo residue and free of damage beyond normal wear. If a container is rejected at the ECP (often for cleanliness), it has to be carted away for cleaning and re-presented, which costs time and money — and the detention clock keeps running the whole time. We'll advise on condition before pickup and can arrange cleaning where needed, so the return goes through first time.
Empty Container Parks in Brisbane
Brisbane's empties are returned to the ECP nominated on your container's release documentation. Each shipping line uses specific parks, so the "right" ECP depends on the line your container came in on. We confirm the correct park from your paperwork before dispatch — getting this right is the difference between a clean dehire and a rejected return.
Standing dehire arrangements
If you're moving containers regularly, a standing dehire arrangement takes the timing problem off your hands entirely. We schedule routine empty pickups from your site on a cadence that suits your unpack cycle, so empties are always returned within the free window. You never think about detention, because it never gets the chance to start. Get in touch to set one up.